1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a gaming machine where a player may play a game using tokens and relates to the game played on the gaming machine. This invention also relates to a server for managing the game such that the server manages or monitors data used in the game.
2. Related Art
A recent game that is manufactured in Japan and supplied as a video game or an arcade game combines the latest hardware and software technology. A composite art or integrated industry of the game with an advanced graphic display technology for displaying characters, backgrounds, etc., and a sophisticated speculative method such as plot development is highly assessed not only in Japan but also around the world. A video game is a type of game to be played with a home video gaming machine or a portable gaming machine. An arcade game is a type of game that is played with an arcade video gaming machine installed in a game hall (so-called game arcade).
These kinds of games range widely and may include, for example, a racing game which displays simulatively a horse race or an auto race, a sports game which displays simulatively a baseball game or a football game, a story game in which a character moves freely in the predetermined region to obtain an item disposed on a map, and a fighting game in which a player may compete with a professional wrestling, boxing, sumo wrestling, judo, kendo (Japanese fencing), and other martial arts using swords or spears.
Recently, people especially enjoy a strategic simulation game among the provided video games.
In the strategic simulation game, the player controls a leader of a group such that the leader may direct a unit that belongs to the group and experiences a fictional strategy and combat in a virtual environment or space being deployed on a screen such as television screen.
In such strategic simulation games, the player controls, for example, a character of Oda Nobunaga (a leader of a group) who governs a country called the Owarino-kuni (Owari region), organizes military commanders (a head of the unit belonging to the group) to be his followers, develops his own military group by utilizing a military draft and training, battles and defeats an opponent group (opponent group) led by another feudal lord such that he may expand his own territory and finally unify the country during a fictional Japanese Warring States Period.
As described above, the player as the leader of the group in the strategic simulation game can battles an opponent by ordering the unit belonging to the group under various strategies. The player can gain various experience as the leader of the group and commanders of the units such that the player easily enjoy virtual strategies and battles.
Generally, the strategic simulation game requires several or several tens of hours in order to accomplish the final purpose. Many players devote themselves to the game over a long period of time enjoying virtual strategies and battles. In this respect, the strategic simulation game is significantly different from that in another category including an action game, a shooting game, a puzzle game, etc.
On the other hand, the arcade game is often elaborated. For instance, a music game for the player to actually dance or play instruments to a rhythm, an airplane simulation game utilizing a mock pilot's seat in the plane cockpit, and so on are quite popular such that some of them may become a boom in the society. The token game having been widely spread, however, still remains popular among the arcade games.
In the token game, the player purchases one or more tokens from a token inscription machine such that the player starts the token game with the gaming machine by inserting the token. If the player wins the game, a predetermined number of tokens are paid out. So, the player who has obtained many tokens through this can enjoy the game again without purchasing a new token.
In such typical token game as a roulette, card games, a horse racing, etc., the way to use tokens is quite simple. Therefore, it is not easy to provide the player with a novel sensation or surprise and it may become difficult to attract more and more players and to make the token game so popular as to make a boom.
In addition, a recent gaming machine that utilizes tokens has been provided such that a plurality of players can simultaneously play a horse racing game including a breeding mode and a racing mode. In the breeding mode of such horse racing game the plurality of players can, for example, breed and train virtual horses owned by the players by inserting tokens and the virtual horses owned by the players can be made to run a race while the players may buy betting tickets for each race by inserting tokens so that the players can receive tokens in accordance with race results. In the gaming machine utilizing tokens that provides the breeding mode and racing mode as described above, however, tokens are paid out in accordance with the result of each race and the number of tokens paid out is not closely related to the content of the game. In this regard, such gaming machine utilizing tokens that provides the breeding mode and racing mode does not essentially differ from a conventional game utilizing tokens and, Therefore, it is difficult for such gaming machine to attract new players as a gaming machine utilizing tokens where an innovative idea is introduced and implemented.
Thus, a gaming machine utilizing tokens where an innovative idea is introduced and implemented is in demand and a strategic simulation game provided by the gaming machine utilizing tokens that allows a plurality of players to play at the same time is under development in order to fulfill such demand. In the case where such strategic simulation game is provided by the gaming machine utilizing tokens, the player can play a strategic simulation game at the game arcade and, in addition, it becomes possible for players to easily compare groups of characters that have been bred or reinforced by the players and to make the groups of characters that have been bred or reinforced by the individual players compete with each other. Therefore, a new type of gaming machine utilizing tokens can be provided so that the skills of the players become important in a manner different from the conventional gaming machine utilizing tokens.
Furthermore, a token with an IC chip built in or incorporated is under consideration so that the token with built-in IC chip, used in the gaming machine, may store data (for example, data concerning groups of characters, data concerning units that belong to the groups, etc.) used with the strategic simulation game. In such a case it becomes possible for tokens (tokens with built-in IC chip) to obtain a new kind of value that has not conventionally existed so that the player can develop an emotional attachment to the player's token. In addition, information concerning the process of the game can be stored in a token with built-in IC chip while the game is in progress and, thereby, it becomes possible for the player to arbitrarily interrupt play and to resume the game that was once interrupted.
In particular, since a long period of time is required to achieve the final objective of the strategic simulation game as described above, the player may hesitate to start the game. Thus, it becomes possible to attract new players if the player may arbitrarily stop the game at any time and resume the game that was once interrupted and stopped.
A player who has played a game with a token with built-in IC chip on a gaming machine installed in a game arcade (first arcade) may not want to stop the game in the middle of it and resume the game with the same gaming machine. The player might rather resume the game in another game arcade (second arcade) with the token with built-in IC chip having been utilized in the first game arcade. If the gaming machine in the second game arcade does not recognize the player as the one who would like to resume the game, it may be difficult to attract such player by introducing such gaming machine.
In addition, since the player may keep the token with built-in IC chip where data used for the strategic simulation game is stored, there is a risk that the player may unfairly modify the data for the purpose of gaining an advantage in the game. If the gaming system allows such action, other players who have been playing the game according to the rules may feel that they have not been treated fairly or have been cheated such that they may feel displeasure leading to a risk that they may quit playing the game.